Truth
Truth is the iteration of worship of the Holy Light as practiced by the followers of the Codex of Flame. Unlike many of the other extant Light-based practices of worship, in Truth, the Light is heavily deified and personified. Principles Unlike the orthodox church, there are not a firm ‘three virtues’ adhered to and codified, but in comparison or perhaps as a tool to teach converts the new religion, the unofficial virtues of ‘Bravery, Sacrifice and Devotion’ are often espoused. Differences Unlike traditional human worship of the Light, which usually teaches of unconditional love and a vague allusion to the Holy Light being an ever-present force rather than a deity, Truth is quite different. Firstly, the Light is heavily deified in Truth, and its temperament is quite different as well. In both the Codex as well as the dominating school of thought among clerics of Truth, the Light is described as very vengeful, angry, controlling and often times quite cruel. Unlike the typical variety of Light worship practiced by humans, where religion is often of tertiary importance, Truth is an all-encompassing way of life for its adherents, dictating things from mundane as facial hair to all of their civil law. Holy Texts The practice of Truth is dictated mainly by one text, namely the Codex of Flame. Revealed after the death of the late Grand Crusader, Saidan Dathrohan, it is presumed to be of divine origin, or at least divine inspiration, a matter of some contention among clerics and paladins who practice it. There are also supplementary texts such as ‘Haeth nir'Saidanir” or "Path of Saidan" in the dialect of archaic common attested to in the Codex of Flame. Haeth nir'Saidanir is a collection of observations and accounts from individuals who knew Dathrohan, some closely and some not so closely, about his opinions and wisdom on certain issues and topics. The book was compiled after his death, the supposed importance of Dathrohan only fully realized after his death, and indeed the entirety of the religion only forming after it as well. The Law of Flame The Law of Flame is a legal code derived mainly from the Codex of Flame, a book of supposedly divine origin according to its adherents, discovered after the death of Saidan Dathrohan, then the Grand Crusader of the Scarlet Crusade. The Law of Flame is the official legal code of the pariah quasi-state known as the ‘Kingdom of the Light’. Tenets The Law of Flame, while not having officially written virtues like the well known “three virtues” of the Orthodox Church, has two sets of unofficial virtues sometimes espoused by its proponents, modelled after the three virtues; the first set being “bravery, sacrifice, and devotion” and the other being “might, wisdom and justice”. The Law of Flame incorporates the highly aggressive nature of the codex it is derived from, with much of the legal code focused on conduct in war and policies in regards to justifying it in accordance with the text. The law also dictates things as mundane as facial hair and cleanliness, very much all-encompassing in the daily life of its oft-fanatical adherents. While mostly derived from the Codex of Flame, the law has a secondary source of conduct, that being the smaller tome known as “Hæth nir’Saidanir”, or “Path of Saidan”, which is a compendium of hundreds of accounts, mostly first hand, of the Grand Crusader's opinions and views on various topics. Given that the Codex was supposedly found on his corpse, and that the Codex is believed to be sacred by its proponents, most of the believers of Truth also believe Dathrohan too to be divine, or at least divinely chosen.Category:Religion Category:Church of the Holy Light Category:Army of the Truthful Category:Scarlet Crusade